Broken
by Ambrel
Summary: What does it take to break a Sky Knight? This is a serial drabble that examines just that. Final Drabble: "Broken"
1. Defiance

Defiance

It took four men to subdue him, but even then, his eyes screamed his defiance through the rapidly swelling bruises that decorated his face.

Two men held his arms wrenched painfully behind his back. Another was braced against his chest while the fourth had one arm wrapped around his forehead and the other curled beneath his chin, causing his head to angle sharply upward. He was on his knees, but the way that he regarded his captors made it seem as though he was staring down his nose at them.

The Dark Ace allowed a smirk to grace his lips. As beat up and worn as Aerrow was, he still had such spirit. "Why, Aerrow," he purred with a self satisfied growl in his tone, "After all the trouble we went through to invite you to our…humble abode…this is how you act? How very rude."

Aerrow craned his neck away from the Talon's arm, and bared his teeth in an angry grimace. "Dark Ace. Don't you even _think_ you've won."

Dark Ace laughed, a broad, triumphant sound. "I _don't _think I've won." He leaned closer. Aerrow's eyes tracked him from within a face tacky from congealing blood. "I _know_ it."

Aerrow spat, but the wad of blood and saliva flew wide, landing on the floor beside the Dark Ace's boot. The older man laughed again. "Poor child. In over your head, aren't you?"

"You're not going to win. I'm not going to let you." Aerrow rasped, his voice scratchy and garbled. He had bit his tongue somewhere along the way and it bled freely, trickling from the corners of his mouth.

He peered intently at Aerrow's face, eyes darting back and across his mottled features. "I'm going to break you, sky knight."

Aerrow's eyes showed only defiance.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 297

This drabble series is kinda in answer to Conversations. Cant let Aerrow be the winner all the time, can we?

Also, this drabble series will be different in that it will have a max of 300 words per entry as opposed to 100.

Also, as I have been getting several PM's from people who want me to toss ideas for fanfcs their way, I was toying with the idea of putting a mini-fanfic challenge up in my profile. Would anyone be interested in trying it out if I invested the time in putting a challenge together?

And, in closing, please review and/or pm me with what you think.


	2. New Home

New Home

The cell was surprisingly clean. Dusty, perhaps, but the seamless stone floor was bare of any debris. The walls were a drab haze grey. A tiny window that was probably too small for Radarr to squeeze through let a shaft of light filter onto the floor from a point several feet above his head.

He had expected the beating. And he _had_ been roughed up a bit, but no where near what he had thought they would do. Most of his injuries had come from his initial capture.

Aerrow glanced down at himself, taking a mental inventory of his status. His injuries, while annoying and somewhat painful, were relatively minor. Two black eyes. Bruised ribs. Busted lip. He was pretty sure that at least one or two of his fingers were broken. Numerous cuts, gashes, and scrapes. But all in all, he was whole. Able to stand, at least.

They had taken his weapons and armor. They had even taken his clothes. He now stood barefoot, wearing a faded green and red jumpsuit.

Out of all the things he had been expecting, though, being left alone wasn't really one of them. The Talon guards had simply thrown him into the cell with little ceremony or regard. They had locked the doors and turned on their heels, not even sparing him another glance.

No jeering. No catcalls.

They had just left him there.

That had been hours ago. It had left Aerrow with little to do but explore his 8x8 cell, and that option was soon exhausted. It held a rough cot attached to the wall and a rude toilet in the corner.

Aerrow sat himself down on the bed and stared through the iron bars of his new home.

Sooner or later, the Dark Ace would show.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 297

This is fun. I'm liking this story. And it gives me free reign to torture Aerrow!


	3. Tougher Stuff

Tougher Stuff

The shaft of light from the tiny window had narrowed and dimmed to a dull yellow glow by the time Aerrow heard the sound of footsteps approaching his cell. He sat up quickly from where he was dozing on the hard wooden cot and stood in the center of the cell. Before the Dark Ace even came into view, Aerrow's face had twisted into a stubborn scowl.

The Dark Ace smiled amiably at his captured nemesis. "Aerrow. You're looking well today."

Aerrow glowered. "What do you want?"

Dark Ace smiled. "I am just checking up on you. You are our guest, after all. I take it the accommodations suit you?"

"Go to hell."

"Now, now, Sky Knight, that is no way to speak to your hosts." He stepped closer to the bars. His voice suddenly dropped, taking on a more sinister and angry sound. "Especially when you are going to be here for a long…_long _time."

"I don't care what you do to me. I can take whatever you can dish out."

"Can you?" Dark Ace asked with a quirk of an eyebrow. "We'll see about that."

He turned to walk away, but stopped, glancing over his shoulder. "Do try to get some rest tonight, Aerrow. I'm afraid you'll need every ounce of energy you possess, come morning."

Aerrow stood with his hands fisted at his sides, teeth clenched painfully.

He knew that the Dark Ace and Cyclonis would do whatever they could to make his life a nightmare. But he couldn't give up hope.

He knew that somewhere, beyond the borders of Cyclonia, his team was out there. They would find him.

All he had to do was outlast the enemy.

The squadron would find a way.

_Sky Knights are made of tougher stuff than Cyclonians_, he told himself.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 300

Okay, the first few challenges are up in my profile if anyone wants to give it a go. I did some pretty simple ones to begin with, but I'll try to come up with some better ones sometime down the line.

Oh! And please review. I hope you enjoyed reading this.


	4. Silence

Silence

It was hardly what he was expecting.

He imagined beatings.

He was prepared to endure bruises and broken bones. He had toughened his mind against the lies he knew they would try to get him to believe.

He had even mentally prepared himself for lashings or brandings. He imagined Cyclonia might lean towards the use of fire in their interrogation tactics…

So when he was led to a blank, empty room he was confused.

When they wrapped thick woolen mittens around his hands and slippers on his feet, he almost asked them what the hell they were doing. The shackles clamped down over the thick cloth and held his hands close against each other. A short chain led from his hands to the shackles on his ankles, making him kneel awkwardly in a fetal position.

He stared at the Talons as they moved briskly around him. In the doorway, the Dark Ace stood watching the scene, customary smirk on his lips.

A woolen mask with crude holes cut out for his nose and eyes was thrust over Aerrow's head. It was followed shortly after by a pair of goggles whose lenses had been painted over black.

He heard the footfalls fade as the Talons exited the room.

There was silence for a moment. Aerrow could hear the minute noises of the prison…distant voices, the squeak of a door here and there…

Then, Dark Ace's voice, accompanied by his footsteps moving closer. "I hope you slept well last night, Aerrow. You're going to be needing your strength."

Aerrow grunted an unheard reply, muffled by the mask.

The Dark Ace's mocking laughter was cut off abruptly from Aerrow's ears by a set of earmuffs that neatly severed his hearing.

He couldn't hear.

Couldn't see.

Couldn't even feel.

And they left him there.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 300

I was going to take a break for today.. but I couldn't. I just found out today that I got promoted! Yayness! So I had to celebrate by writing something!


	5. The Sensation

The Sensation

The lack of sensation was, ironically, what made it hurt.

It started off as a minor discomfort. Balancing on the balls of his feet began as the first annoyance. That was soon followed by the quiet burn of the long muscles in his legs as they began to protest the awkward, scrunched up position he was in.

Because of the way they had chained his hands and feet so close together, it was nigh impossible to find a position that did not start to ache within a few minutes.

He had nothing to take his mind off of the complaints of his body. If he had been able to hear, perhaps, or even look around the empty room, he might have been able to ignore the aches and pains. He couldn't be sure, but he knew that he hadn't been sitting there for _too _long.

His ears, unaccustomed to the sudden silence, began to ring. Logically, he knew that there was no noise for his ears to hear, but all the same, it sounded as though a high pitched tone just started up in his head. It droned on and on, not ending, not varying in pitch.

It was annoying.

But probably by far, the worst of it all was the combination of the goggles and the cotton mitts. The mittens were bad enough, making him feel as though he was enveloped in some sort of cottony prison, but coupled with the goggles; it gave him an almost gravity-less feeling. Like nothing existed beyond the limits of his skin.

Made him dizzy. Made him lose his balance.

When he wavered, his muscles howled at him. Thighs and calves burned. The arches of his feet ached.

And he had nothing else to do but focus his entire being on the sensation.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 300

Before anyone asks me, no, I am not making a political statement. No, I am not going to take the rating of this fic any further than T-rated. No explicit degradation, sex, or profanity, I promise.

I _am _going to mess with Aerrow pretty bad, though. If you've read any of my other stuff, you know I like to get into the characters' respective heads. This is going to be a study in character development in an different direction.


	6. Rhythm

Rhythm

The light from his tiny window was nonexistent when they brought him back to his cell the first time. His stomach ached terribly. He had no idea how long he had been left in that room, cut off from his senses, but it was long enough for him to start getting light headed from lack of sustenance. Even more, his entire body hurt from the awkward positions he had held for hours on end.

It became something of a rhythm. A rhythm with no sense of a pattern to follow, if that was possible. At random points during the day, he would be taken from his cell without warning, whisked away to the cold grey room. Each time, he would be muffled, blinded, chained…sometimes for only moments, sometimes for what felt like days.

It was hard…hard to keep up with the time of day. The only reference he had was the tiny window in his cell…though the amount of light it showed when he returned from the grey room was different with each time.

He couldn't guess how long he'd been there. Days? A week? Longer?

No way to know.

Oh, how his body hurt. The strain of his chain-induced posture was bearable the first few sessions. But as the sense-deprivation continued, his body became more and more fatigued.

Whenever he was not bound in his cotton and iron prison, he was left alone in his cell. No one came to jeer…not even the Dark Ace.

In fact, it was a rare occurrence for Aerrow to see the man at all.

But…he heard him.

Each time, right after the opaque glasses were put over his eyes, he would hear the mocking laughter of the Cyclonian champion…

…Only to be cut off abruptly as his hearing was stolen from him again.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 300


	7. Hiss

Hiss

The hissing started during one of the few moments of sleep he managed to snatch in between sessions with the grey room.

A noise that sounded like air being let out from a tire filled his ears, causing him to jerk violently away from a disturbing dream.

It wasn't loud, really. But it was constant. A low, evil hiss that made even the air hum.

_Hsss…_

His guards didn't even bat an eyelash. They didn't respond when he asked about the noise. They acted as though they couldn't even hear it.

Aerrow sat himself down on the wooden bunk. He couldn't be sure, but he guessed that he had been a prisoner for at least three weeks…possibly more. He spent nearly every waking moment thinking…making plans and coming up with ideas of escape, only to discard them one by one.

They had him completely under control. No way to escape their supervision. His guards were more competent than he'd ever seen a Talon act.

There didn't seem to be a way out…

_Hssss…_

He laid back on the bunk and closed his eyes once more. Whatever happened, he knew one thing-he needed as much rest as he could get. They were trying to play with his mind. He knew this. But he had to hold out. Be stronger.

The hissing continued unabated. His eyes refused to stay closed, regardless of how they burned from fatigue. They searched fruitlessly for the source of the noise…the constant, droning tone that bore into his head like so many insects.

The tiny sliver of light from his window started to lengthen though its small illumination gave him no hint as to the origin of the hissing.

He stared at it, bloodshot, as it crept across the floor.

He stayed there.

Like that.

For hours.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 300

My move is getting ever closer. I hope to resolve The Wager (finally) and throw a few more updates for Broken, Conversations, and Moments up too, before I leave for the month.

Oh, I hope y'all are enjoying Aerrow's slow spiral.. and if you cant get enough of torturing the poor guy, head on over to Crystal Lit Moon's fic, 'Stand Firm'. She says it was inspired by this one! Aww….I feel special.

So yeah, please review. Thanks for reading!


	8. The Joy of Pain

The Joy of Pain

The hissing never let up. It was constant…a constant _hsssss _that rang continually in his ear.

The only time he got away from the noise was when they took him back into that cold grey room. He almost relished the feeling of the mask sliding over his face. He didn't even fight with the Talons who slipped those goggles over his eyes. And when he heard Dark Ace's mocking laugh…he only thought of how he would soon be rid of that grating hissing noise.

His world became an ugly scene, split by a pair of painted black goggles. On one side…the noiseless, colorless darkness…on the other, the loud, varied pitch of the hissing sound.

It kept him up at night…or during whatever times he was allowed to attempt sleep. Just when he would start to nod off…the noise would change its frequency, jerking his eyes open once again.

He almost welcomed the blessed quiet of the grey room

It wouldn't be so bad, he mused during those wakeful hours in his cell, if he knew where the noise came from. But there were no pipes near his cubicle. Nothing that could account for the noise…

But still, it continued.

Perhaps if he had anything else to occupy his attention. If he only had something else to dwell on…

He could think about his team…but he didn't want to…not now. He had no idea where they were.

They hadn't come for him.

They wouldn't…abandon him…would they?

No way.

Aerrow leaned against the wall of his cell.

He had to keep it together.

He clenched his hands into fists at the welter of emotion that struggled within him.

"Ow!" He looked down at his hand.

Broken finger.

Experimentally, he clenched his hand again, gasping as pain roared through it.

Aerrow smiled.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 299

Hmmm… what's he thinking?

Dun dun DUN!


	9. A Small Victory

A Small Victory

It took a few sessions in the grey room before they finally figured it out.

It was the oldest trick in the book…and the most effective one, at that.

After all, it's hard to deprive a person of physical sensation…when all they have to do is flex a broken joint.

The pain kept him grounded. Gave him something to hold onto. To return to. To escape from the mind-numbing quiet. And it hurt.

But it was a good hurt, now that he thought about it.

He considered it a small victory when he heard the enraged Dark Ace disciplining the prison guards. That was the good thing about a prison, Aerrow supposed…implements to instill fear to the troops were never far from reach.

Actual, physical damage…judging from the anger in his voice, the Dark Ace had been adamant that they refrain from causing lasting damage to Aerrow…probably for this express purpose.

Aerrow smiled, huddled on his bunk. The finger hurt like hell. From the looks of it, he would probably have to re-learn how to wield his blades…if he ever got the opportunity to hold them again, that is.

A shadow fell across the cell door. "I hope you don't think you've bested me," came Dark Ace's cultured voice, brimming with amused hostility.

Aerrow narrowed his eyes. "I told you. I'll never let you win." His voice was raspy with disuse.

When had he last spoken to another person?

Weeks ago…maybe months?

How many months? He almost asked aloud…but he didn't want to give his thoughts away.

The Dark Ace smiled. "I told you …I won a long time ago. Now…" he leaned forward, his eyes glimmering menacingly. "Now…all I want to do is break you."

A small victory.

But…the look on the Dark Ace's face…

A costly one.

OOO

Author's note: Total word count: 299

Wow… this is not going where I imagined it would.

And I'm not sure how this will end or not… Hell, I wasn't even sure how I would continue from the last chapter, but after getting requests to update this at least once before I went on hiatus…well, I couldn't rightly refuse.

Review!


	10. Cold

Cold

The pain of the finger didn't help him now.

Aerrow huddled in on himself as best he could, shaking violently from the cold.

They had left him alone for a few days when he had bested their attempts at isolation. At the time, he had never been so happy to have a broken bone.

Well…until they came up with this.

Ice had formed on his lashes over an hour ago, and he had only been in the freezer for about ninety minutes. His hands were bound behind him with some sort of rope, a kindness, he supposed. They had removed the cold irons from his hands before throwing him in there. The metal would have taken some of his skin off if they hadnt.

The rope on his wrists was attached to a metal loop on the wall, about waist high, keeping him standing and immobile. He couldn't even hunch over against the cold that made him shake so violently. His ankles were also tied together. He stood in only his prison jumpsuit.

Aerrow wondered if he was going freeze to death.

For the first half hour he was fine, though bored, staring at the featureless steel walls. It was a large freezer. Ice blocks on the end of it.

It was so very cold. The kind of cold that made you try to hold stock still in the hopes that maybe, if you didn't move, the elements wouldn't _notice _you. The kind that made you shake so hard your eyes rolled around in your head.

The cold that whispered, _"I can kill you…And you can't stop me."_

Pain took a back seat in this cold. Couldn't feel...

His eyelids drooped.

So cold…So painless.

Couldn't feel the pain from where he had bitten his tongue in his violent shivering…

So…tired…

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 300

Hi! Its me again! Not quite back from hiatus but I'm still around, I promise!

I hope to be updating more after next month. I'm buying a house and we close at the end of July! Woo! So I had to write this to celebrate. And when I get back I have so many stories bouncing around in my head, I hope y'all are ready for some rapid-fire reading. I have my drabbles to continue, I want to update 

Old Enough to Know Better, and start a couple new ones. Anyhow, I still check my email so I have been getting your reviews so even if I don't reply know that I truly appreciate that people are reading my stuff. And I am always up to reply to PMs and emails and I try to squeeze in betareading too, though I'm having some scheduling difficulties with that right now.

Thanks for reading!


	11. Burn

Burn

It burned.

The air burned. His skin burned. The blood in his veins burned as it began to move in a frantic attempt to move oxygen through his body.

His nose was crusted with glittering beads of blood from where the vessels had burst when they had taken him from the freezer. The sclera of his eyes were pink and weeping red.

He couldn't unclench his hands.

Laying on a thin blanket on the floor of his cell, he could almost feel the cold being violently sucked from his body and replaced with the ambient heat on the room.

Oh, it burned.

They had moved him to his cell when he stopped shivering. His sight was wavering, blackening in spots and dashed with white motes that made his head hurt.

And…he wasn't alone in his cell.

Though he couldn't move his head to see, he knew whose boots stepped into his line of sight.

Knew the self-satisfied chuckled.

But…he wasn't expecting the deluge of warm water. To anyone else, it would have been lukewarm at best. To a man who was suffering from hypothermia…

Boiling.

A scream that he tried to hold back worked its way through his throat, shrill and broken, tearing from his clenched, frozen vocal cords.

Aerrow heard a shatter somewhere behind his head, then felt another stab of pain amid the fiery agony as the Dark Ace's boot connected with his stomach, rocking him onto his back.

Then…another pain filled his mind, itchy and crackling.

Glass.

He could hear the crunch as it entered his shoulder and back.

The pitcher that held the water…broken on the floor.

Dark Ace's boot pressed down on his chest, working the shards deeper into his flesh.

Aerrow's eyes screamed defiance.

Dark Ace's face showed only triumph.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 296

Hey! Long time, no see!

Oooo….getting brutal in this fic. Bad Ace, bad!

But its so fun…

Good news for people who haven't forgotten about me! I get the internet at home on Wednesday, so we'll be back in the stories soon. I'm excited. I also hear that the next season of Storm Hawks is airing for all you lucky people in Canada. I guess the poor US will have to wait for Cartoon Network to get a good idea and pick it up again, huh?

As always, I really appreciate your reviews. I'm sorry I haven't updated lately, but I will definitely keep it up more in the coming weeks!


	12. Late Night

Late Night

Late at night, when the lights were finally dimmed and no one was around to witness, he cried. Not the wild sobbing of the hopeless, nor the bawling in fear that might have overtaken lesser men, but the simple silence of quiet tears sliding from beneath his closed eyelids, making long, lonely tracks across his face to land lightly on the sorry excuse for a blanket that he used to pillow his head.

He didn't cry for himself. As a sky knight, he had less concern for his own well being in the face of the uncertain fate of his comrades. No, his tears were far too dear, too precious, to waste on himself. Even with the glass shards imbedded in his skin, slowly becoming toxic.

He didn't weep for his country or even the war. Right now, caged in the four grey walls that made up his world, those things were too far away to even be considered real. The outside world was slipping inexorably away from him, and he could do nothing but watch it vanish in the misty corners of his mind.

His tears weren't even for his squadron. By this point, the logical part of him knew that they were either dead, captured, or they had given him up for lost.

He prayed that was the case, when he could force himself to remember their faces. They didn't deserve this fate that he had endured for so many months. He hoped that they had listed his name among the casualties of this war. He couldn't bring himself to wish to see them again, since it would likely be as fellow prisoners.

So…late at night…when the stars he could no longer see winked into existence over the great empire of Cyclonia…he cried.

But he didn't know why.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 300

Wow, that was kinda… intense. Surprisingly, this blurb of inspiration came to me while I was sitting in line waiting for a new ID card on base.

I know I promised to write more, and I will, but I am now juggling evening work out sessions, two college classes this session, and my family, not to mention work, so updates may not be as quick as they once were. I shall try, though!

Please review!


	13. Coping With Reality

Coping With Reality

"What are you going to do to me now?" his voice was wavering and weak, though he tried to inject the last remnants of his fading confidence into his words. It had been some days since the glass had entered his flesh. In that time, he had been left utterly alone. When he had finally regained the ability to move his hands, albeit clumsily, he had done his best to rid himself of the shards, but some had already dug so deep that he knew they weren't coming out.

It hadn't taken long for the wound to turn. He could tell by the smell that an infection was starting in.

The Dark Ace said nothing, only stood there in the doorway to his cell. His arms were crossed over his chest and his entire demeanor shouted satisfaction.

Aerrow managed to lever himself up into a more dignified position. He couldn't hold back a grimace of pain as his back and shoulder screamed at him. He could only guess at how long it would take for the infection to turn septic.

It was times like this where he found it easiest to retreat into himself. The Dark Ace had begun to come by more frequently, only to stand at the door and watch him with a smug expression. Aerrow had discovered that given the right incentives, he could lose himself for hours in the foggy recesses of his mind.

It gave him a sort of sanctuary against the stares of the soldiers as they passed his cell. It let him escape the torturous thoughts that continually passed through his mind…what happened to his team? What news of the war?

He shied away from those questions. As much as he yearned to know…he feared the answers.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 294


	14. Resistance

Resistance

"You wont win…" he mumbled. "You cant win…wont let you…"

His feverish eyes stared out at the grey walls, completely independent of his murmuring.

The medic was unnerved by this behavior, but he wisely resisted showing it in the presence of his superior. The Dark Ace watched with an almost detached air as Aerrow lay on his stomach on the cot, not acquiescent, but too weak to move.

A foul odor rose as the medical man worked, evidenced by the slight wrinkling of the Dark Ace's nose. It was close…confined. The ventilation was not the best.

Aerrow's mind could barely focus, but he knew that his nemesis was there. Always there. Always watching. Waiting.

He couldn't possibly think he had won.

"Wont let you…"

The medic looked up from the small but festering wounds that he was busily cleaning. "It will be a little while, sir, but I think I can fix him up all right."

"See to it."

The medic winced at the cold inflection, and turned back to his patient.

Aerrow had subsided into silence, his eyes glazed and fixed. This was an expression with which the guards had become well acquainted.

This was nearly more unnerving to the medic as his incoherent babbling from just moments ago.

The Dark Ace's eyes searched the face of the younger man as though looking for something in particular. After a moment, he shook his head.

"Erm…sir? Is there something the matter?"

"There will be if you do not shut up and do your job, Talon." Dark Ace snapped irritably.

The medic flinched and turned hurriedly back to the Sky Knight. "Yessir…"

Silence reign again in the room for a short time. The medic almost didn't notice when the Dark Ace left, growling under his breath.

"…I will break you…"

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 299


	15. A Late Visit

A Late Visit

The fevers subsided. Strength returned.

His voice…still weak…raspy

He lay in darkness.

Aerrow's back was bound with clean linen. His wounds had begun to heal once they had been treated and cleaned. Unfortunately, the level of infection that had set in had seen to it that he would sport impressive scars from the medic's scalpel.

The Dark Ace hadn't been back in a while…all Aerrow could do was anticipate his return.

What…what would happen to him then?

What would he endure next?

More pain…more solitude?

Cold…?

But…

Why…?

What did they want?

He's been here for months…any intelligence he had would be useless…

So…what did he have to give?

_I will break you._

Break?

But…he couldn't break. He couldn't. Could he?

_I __**will **__break you._

No…no! He argued in his mind.

He was alive…As long as he lived, there was hope.

Maybe his team would find him.

_I've already won._

No…

"You…cant.."

There was a presence there. He could feel it, even if he couldn't see in the dark.

Heard an eloquent laugh that rang out like some obscene bell from the far side of his cell.

"I cant what, Aerrow?"

"Wont...let…"

A flicker of light appeared. It only gave a small halo of ambiance, enough to illuminate the Dark Ace's sharp features. He moved forward.

"Wont let what, my friend?"

Aerrow's eyes widened and he tried to push himself up into a sitting position. "What… are you…?"

He laughed again. "Me? I'm not doing anything…in fact, I am going to leave you alone for a while. I have a new task to see to…but I wanted to leave you with a parting gift."

He placed the glow-crystal down…and in the nimbus of light, Aerrow could see something that made his breathing hitch.

A long lock of soft blue hair.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 300

I'm working on the next chapter of Stranded. The third chapter of Old Enough To Know Better is halfway done. I might update Conversations tonight. And I might do more on Broken tonight or this weekend too.

Lotsa reading ahead! Review!


	16. Something's Breaking

Something's Breaking

Bleeding again.

Aerrow stared dully at his swollen, purpling hands, not even feeling the pain. He breathed hard and the cracked, raspy noise that escaped his throat with each exhale spoke volumes of the past few hours of torment.

They had Piper.

They had Piper and he didn't know if they're harmed her. After what he'd endured, he could only imagine what they could do to her.

It burned him down to the very core. The impotence. The anger.

The fear.

He gave an animalistic groan that creaked painfully from his abused lungs. Even as he stared down at his broken, bloody nails that had left long trails of red on the bars and walls of his cell, he began to despair.

To make things worse, Dark Ace had been a man of his word. Since leaving that precious lock of hair-which Aerrow had secreted away near his bed-he had left. Not a word from him or any of the talons since.

They had Piper.

They had _Piper._

If they got her…what about the others?

What about Stork? Or Junko? Finn couldn't survive here like this….could he?

What about Radarr? Would they even keep him alive?

Aerrow began to shake…though his eyes stayed dry.

His team had to be safe. They were his rock, the last solid anchor that he clung to in this place of pain and madness.

If they were gone…

If...

Aerrow sank down to his knees…let himself fall to the floor.

Strange…something inside him pulled tight.

One deep breath.

Piper…

Another inhalation.

Behind his eyes…something burned.

Like fire.

A shaky exhale…another breath.

_Keep breathing, Aerrow, _he ordered himself, _Just keep breathing._

A deep breath.

Piper was…they…

They got _Piper!_

In that moment…something inside him cracked.

Like…an icicle falling to the ground.

Something broke.

Something…_snapped._

_Something shattered._

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 300

Thanks for this idea goes out to Tawnyfur, who replied to my review reply (hah, aint that a mouthful?) and gave me a pretty good idea. To be truthful, I was at a loss as to how to continue it from the last chapter. So, kudos to Tawnyfur! Yay!

Anyhow, please review!


	17. Now You'll Cry Forever

Now You'll Cry Forever

After weeks alone in the dark, Aerrow set his eyes on that hated man once more. Dark Ace walked confidently into the cell, staring down his nose at Aerrow as he crouched next to the cot. His green eyes stared, full of hate and irrational anger.

If he'd had the strength, he would have killed the man then, with his bare hands.

Dark Ace laughed…drew a thin bladed knife from his boot.

"Thought I'd come by and share some memories with you, Aerrow," he murmured. "Thought you might like to hear how I've been amusing myself while I was away from you."

Aerrow's response was a guttural growl.

"So articulate." He raised an elegant brow and laughed. "But I must say, your little navigator was ever so much more so."

"No…" he said, hoarsely.

"She didn't have your spirit, Sky Knight." Dark Ace leaned close, "She didn't take long to crack…not long at all."

Aerrow tried to leap at him…but his strength failed him, as it had been for weeks.

"In fact," Dark Ace mused. "She didn't even make it past the isolation phase."

Aerrow couldn't stop the moan that drew itself from his throat.

"She was begging for it to stop, you know…we never laid a finger on her. Pathetic, really."

Dark Ace knelt. Took Aerrow's unresisting face into his hands. Drew out the knife.

"She kept asking you to forgive her…"

A flash of heat as the blade cut through skin like butter. Aerrow whimpered.

"I told her you'd cry for her…said I'd make sure of it."

Fire traced from the outer corners of his eye…down his cheek…to his jaw. Then again, agonizing and slow, on the other side. Blood gushed from the fresh, deep gashes extending down his face.

"There," Dark Ace whispered, "Now you'll cry forever."

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 300

Wow. That was brutal. Didn't know where that one came from. But… I kinda liked it.

Just a forewarning, folks. This fic will probably mess with your minds a bit by the time I am done, so bear with me. And I make no promises in regards to happy endings. It all comes as the mood takes me, though I have a general idea as to where this one is going.

Thanks for reading! Review!


	18. Crack

**_WARNING!  
This is extremely graphic and may be disturbing to some people. I repeat, this is not for the faint of heart!_**

**_I warned you._**

**_Seriously._**

**_Dont blame me._**

Crack

_Crack!_

Salty tear burn when they mix with open wounds…but that was the least of Aerrow's pains…well, so to speak.

_Craaaack!_

He couldn't feel it… not really. After all, the medical staff Cyclonis employed was very likely the best at their jobs. Still…he couldn't stop the raw screams that accompanied each…

_Craaack!_

They held him there. They wouldn't let him move or even close his eyes. They'd strapped his entire body into the chair.

_Craack!_

They'd put a rope-wrapped wooden stick in his mouth…a small kindness, really. Even though he couldn't feel it-

_Crack!_

-he still had to bite down in the perceived agony. His entire body jerked and his eyes rolled back into his head.

"Don't close your eyes," Dark Ace whispered in his ear. "We'll just have to wait for you to wake back up…better to finish it now, don't you think?

_Crack!  
_

Aerrow whimpered, a piteous sound, low in his throat. His jaw cracked from the pressure he was putting onto the stick.

_Craaaack!_

"Almost done," Dark Ace crooned, stepping around Aerrow to admire the handiwork of the Talon. "You're being such a good sport, my boy."

_Craaack!_

It felt like his chest was constricting in on itself. The incongruous effect between his unfeeling…unfeelingness, and the pain that he knew should be there….it almost did him in.

_Craaaaack!  
_

His hands…his hands…he couldn't feel them…but he knew that they were…were…where was the pain?

The Talon moved the long metal instrument to Aerrow's thumb…wrapped it around…

And…and…

_Craack!_

Where was….

Where…wh…was…

Where was the _PAIN?_

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count 256

Ew.

I mean… ow. Serious ow. Wonder if I should change this to an M rating?

Review and tell me what you think! Is he broken yet? Or does he have more fight in him? Give me some input here!


	19. Claws

Claws

He had claws.

They were healed, somehow. Through weeks of drug induced stupor and constant attention from a legion of medics…his hands were healed.

But…they weren't hands anymore.

Knurled, twisted, and impossibly bent…they were claws.

He couldn't move three fingers on his left hand. They had somehow fused at the joints. On his right hand…

Well, they had to amputate the index finger when the rot had set in…

But the others… well, he could move those.

But it didn't matter anymore.

What good was a warrior who couldn't fight? He couldn't pick up his water cup, much less his daggers.

He…was…

"Useless."

Aerrow flinched at the voice that echoed into his cell. The Dark Ace stood, cleaning beneath his nails with a small knife.

"W...what?"

The older man flicked a glance at Aerrow. "That's what you are now, isn't it?" He asked. He leaned in, his eyes seeming to alight with sadistic glee as he enunciated slowly. "Useless. Can't hold a blade. Can't control a skimmer. Can't even feed yourself without help."

"No…"

"Imagine…what would your squadron say? What would they do?"

"I…"

The Dark Ace laughed. "Why, they'd have to find a _new _Sky Knight, wouldn't they? After all…aren't you supposed to lead _them _in battle?"

Aerrow stared, unable to deny any of what the Dark Ace said…because he knew it was true.

"You aren't a Storm Hawk anymore, Aerrow. You aren't even a threat. You haven't been for months." His eyes narrowed…his mouth quirked into a grin.

Aerrow could only watch his gnarled, healed hands as Dark Ace's words pummeled him with the ring of truth.

"All you are to them now, Aerrow…All you will ever be again…is a _liability."_

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 283

Okay, here's an apology for the sheer gross factor of the last one. Seriously, I don't know where that came from.

Please don't stop reading! I'm not always that bad! I swear!

And…uh…review! Yes!


	20. The Proposition

The Proposition

Sunlight shocked him.

His eyes, dull and chalky from his time indoors, squeezed shut in protest of the searing pain of the unfettered rays of the sun.

The Dark Ace's fist was wrapped in the prison jumpsuit he wore. Before Aerrow could get his feet back underneath him, the Dark Ace shoved him forward with great violence.

The ground was hard. His body was wasted and weak, and he fell heavily onto his crippled hands.

Aerrow cried out, a short yelp that choked off.

"Here we are, Aerrow." Dark Ace smirked. Aerrow heard a brush of metal against metal, then the hum of energy. His eyes were still shut.

"Are…you…gonna…"he panted irregularly, "…f…f…finish it….finally?"

"No. I have a deal for you."

Aerrow pushed himself painfully from the ground. Got to his knees. Wobbled.

Dark Ace watched as he managed to gracelessly coax his way to his feet. "I have a proposition, Aerrow."

There was a clatter. A puff of hard dust rose up, tickling his nose.

He opened his eyes. Staggered.

There, at his feet were…

"My…daggers…?"

Dark Ace smiled. "Your freedom. I have one condition."

Aerrow stared.

"You must pick them up." Dark Ace showed his teeth in an even wider, wolfish smile. "And show me your Lightning Claw."

He fell to his knees. Reached out to touch the well worn hilts. So inviting.

So natural…so…mocking.

He scooped them up in hands that could never again grasp the hilt, cradling them close to his chest.

He turned inward, to that reservoir of power that lay deep within him. The part of him that sang triumphant when he flew.

The driving force…the fire that lit his soul. The flame of purpose.

The part of his being that made him what he was…a Sky Knight.

He reached inside…and touched ashes.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 299

Hrm….should he suffer more? I have more suffering I can do to him…but…

Is he broken yet? What do you think?


	21. The Lost Is Found

The Lost Is Found

They found him on the runway. He was unconscious, dirty. He was curled into the fetal position, his hands cradled to his chest.

"Guys! Come quick! Get over here, _now!" _Feet pounded across the deck. Someone was shaking him. "Aerrow!"

His eyes squeezed shut against the unaccustomed noise. He moaned as his hands jostled. He curled tighter into himself, raising his mangled hands to shield his head.

"Give him some room. Back up, guys!"

Who was…

He cracked an eye open, staring hazily up at the faces that crowded his vision. He almost couldn't believe it when the blurs coalesced into something recognizable…

"Finn…?" He croaked. The large brown blur behind him solidified into Junko…then Stork. He couldn't force himself to believe it. "Jun..ko…?"

Finn wrapped his arm around one of Aerrow's, helping him to a standing position. Aerrow wobbled uncertainly. "Dude! We've been worried sick! We tried to get to you so many times-"

"That's an understatement, Finn!" Junko bellowed, wrapping Aerrow in a giant hug. "Piper was fanatical about finding you, man! She-"

"Uh…guys?" Stork put in, "Maybe…we should…uh…take him inside?"

Aerrow whimpered at the motion and noises around him. Junko gathered him up and took him to the bridge, trailed by his other two squad mates.

As soon as he was safely inside, he was wrapped in another hug. "We missed you Aerrow!" Junko growled through tears. Looking around, Aerrow saw tears welling in the eyes of everyone…even Stork.

His eyes remained dry…he was still shocked.

"Dude… what happened?" Finn asked, his voice quavering. "You look…I mean…and…and…" he trailed off, looking at Aerrow's mangled hands.

Aerrow crossed his arms in a defensive gesture. "I…"

"Uhh…Guys?" Stork interjected, "Lets…uh…back off for a minute, okay? He doesn't need all the…noise right now…"

Aerrow shuddered, grateful.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 296

Oooo….talk about a switch! I have more coming tonight, I think. Review!


	22. Things Were Different

Things Were Different

The helped him back to his room.

Alone again. He had the largest room on the Condor. It was just the way he remembered it…decorated in the same Spartan way that he'd always had. It was hollow in there…he felt nervous, with all the open space.

Standing there in the middle of the room, his legs gave out on him and he met the floor with a thick thump. He dragged himself to where he could sit beside his bed.

He stayed there for a long time, listening to the constant sighs and creaks of the ship…sounds that he hadn't heard in a year.

They hadn't mentioned Piper…they hadn't anything about her, except that she'd been worried…

Had she been so worried that she disregarded her own safety to find him?

Is that how they…they…

He squeezed his eyes shut. There was a lump in his throat, but the tears refused to come.

He could tell things were different. Finn was more subdued…Junko was less childish.

Stork? Well…he had a more commanding air about him.

Was Dark Ace right? Had the team moved on?

Finn's eyes when he noticed Aerrow's hands…shock…recoil. Almost revulsion.

It…hurt.

He almost missed it…the sound of his door opening.

The soft footsteps.

A gasp that could have just been the wind.

He almost missed the quiet, choked cry that echoed in the vast expanse of the room. In fact, he tried hard to keep his eyes shut. To stay in the strange dreamlike state, where-

"Aerrow…?"

Oh, he didn't want to open his eyes. If he did, he knew she wouldn't be there.

If he did, she'd still be gone. And he'd still be to blame.

But cool fingers coaxed his head up. Convinced his eyes to open.

His breath hitched, rough in his throat.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 299

Aw… how sweet.

This is going to wrap up soon. But I do think I will be doing a sequel to it. I think it has one, possibly two chapters left to it.


	23. She Was There

She Was There

He couldn't believe it at first. But it was…true.

She was there.

She was kneeling next to him on the floor. He couldn't get his mouth to work with the rest of his body. Her hands were cool and warm at the same time as she ran them over his face, across the silver scars that adorned his cheeks. She was talking to him, but he couldn't make himself comprehend the words immediately.

It was…it was…_Piper._

"Aerrow. Oh, god, Aerrow. Is it really you?" Her voice vibrated with emotion. He barely noticed the tears falling from her eyes as she touched his face to reassure herself that he was really there. "I was so worried. How did you make it back? Where were you? Oh, god. Oh thank god…"

His throat worked as he swallowed fiercely…but the huge lump in his throat wouldn't go down. "I…" he croaked. "Pi…per…I…"

A single tear tracked down his right cheek, following the grooves that the Dark Ace have carved. "You were…he…you…" his voice dwindled, but his eyes, his dulled, lifeless eyes, shone with confusion. He took a shuddering breath, then tried again. "He…_killed_ you."

"No! I'm still here, Aerrow. We've been looking for you the whole time. We tried so hard…but they always were one step ahead." She fumbled for his hands, grasping them in her own. "We almost…al…most…" she looked down…

"Oh…Aerrow…" There it was…what he feared the most.

The look in her eyes. The…revulsion. The uncertainty. The shock.

"Aerrow…what did they do to you? Your hands…"

Aerrow stiffened. Looked away.

He felt her fingers flex uncertainly around his mangled digits. He pulled his hands away.

Crossed his arms…tucked his hands down by he sides defensively.

"I…" he whispered…but could think of nothing to say.

There was pity in her eyes.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 299

Okay, I lied. There are at LEAST two more after this. One is already written. I might just finish it up tonight. But please, please, PLEASE review. I am really liking this fic and I wanna know if I should continue in this particular style. Tell me what you think!


	24. Pity

Pity

"Let me see, Aerrow. I might-"

"No…" he forced from his bruised throat. "There's…nothing…"

"But-"

"No…"

Piper grabbed his hands. At her action, Aerrow flinched violently and threw up a shoulder on instinctual block. Piper froze.

He looked…scared. His body was tight as a bowstring and he quivered in the defensive position he had assumed. His breathing was shaky and his eyes, once a brilliant green, were murky and fuzzed.

He had been ill treated, that was obvious just by looking at him. His entire frame looked lighter…like he had lost a good deal of his body mass and muscle in the past year that he'd been gone.

Piper's heart went out to him. "Oh, Aerrow…" she murmured, dropping one hand to his back and the other to his face, cradling his cheek. She rubbed her hand over his back, wincing inwardly at the raised, bumpy scars she could feel through the fabric. "What did they do to you?"

At her touch, he began to shake. "He…he…" he broke off, turning his head. He fumbled for the waistband of his pants, where he had painstakingly tucked the lock of hair that the Dark Ace had presented him with before he'd been whisked from the prison. Long and navy blue, it was clumsily tied with a strip of cloth from his prison jumpsuit. "He killed you…"

He looked up at her, pain filling his being at the pity he saw reflected there.

So…it was true.

The words echoed in his head…though they were spoken weeks ago.

"_You aren't a Storm Hawk anymore, Aerrow. You aren't even a threat. You haven't been for months."_

Piper's reactions…his squadron's reactions too…they pitied him.

The Dark Ace knew his game well.

"I…can't…"

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 287

Ugh. This chapter actually made me feel kinda bad…and that is saying a lot, since I didn't blink and eyelash for the whole thing up until now.


	25. Haunting Memories

Haunting Memories

She had left, finally. He was alone again.

Aerrow could hardly believe that he was back at the Condor…back home.

Safe…even so, it took a feat of will to leave his room the first time.

The events of the past two days had occurred so suddenly…

"_You have become boring, Aerrow." Dark Ace sighed as he leaned against the wall inside the cell._

_Aerrow was curled up on the cot. His head felt dull…stuffed with cotton. His eyes creaked open and settled mechanically on the Dark Ace. _

"_Too bad, really." Dark Ace said, lacing his fingers together and leisurely cracking his knuckles. "I must say, I did enjoy our time together, my boy. You turned out to be a very good sport."_

He passed the bathroom and wavered…it had been so long since he'd had a shower…well, one that hadn't been scalding hot, designed to burn…

He stepped inside, cautiously. The wider spaces of the ship were strange to him now…it made him nervous. The bathroom was small…confined.

Safe.

"_But, as they say," The Dark Ace continued, "All good things must come to an end, eh? And well…I suppose that includes you, too."_

"_So…" Aerrow grated from his pained throat, "…you're going to finally…kill me…"_

The water steamed gently, creating rivulets down his impossibly scarred back.

_The Dark Ace raised an eyebrow. "Oh, don't be so melodramatic, Aerrow. I'm not going to kill you." He barked a laugh. "That would destroy everything I've done so far."_

"_Then…what…?"_

He cringed at the memories...

_Dark Ace turned on his heel, heading out. He looked over his shoulder with a derisive snort. "I'm not giving them a martyr. I am going to return one of their most powerful leaders…crippled…broken…and utterly destroyed."_

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 288

Ooooh... I am going to make some people made with this one. Bwahahaha.

Review!


	26. The News

The News

Days had passed.

Aerrow had fallen into a restless, uneasy routine. He stayed in his room, away from everyone else, even during mealtimes. During the few times that the others would try to coax him into coming out, he would either ignore them or they would find his demeanor too queer and strange to stay near him for long.

They had a pattern they had established when he'd disappeared…and it worked. They'd pooled together strengths and abilities until they had managed to function without their sky knight, filling in the gap he left by sheer determination and stubbornness.

Aerrow sat on the floor near his bed, as he had taken to doing, when Piper found him.

"It's time to eat," she ventured, "Are you…going to join us?"

He stayed silent. Soon, she moved to leave.

"Piper…"

"Yes?"

He looked at her, but was unable to force himself to keep eye contact. Staring down at his own chest, he asked, "Where's…where's Radarr?"

He missed the heartbroken look on Piper's face. He missed the hesitation in her step…the slight hitch in her breathing.

She moved to him, knelt down beside him. "Oh…"

"…what?"

"I didn't realize…Aerrow, oh no…I don't know how to tell you…"

"Tell me what?"

"Aerrow…" She furrowed her brow in pain and regret for what she was about to say. "Aerrow…Radarr…he's…"

Aerrow waited, shoulders slumped.

"Radarr's gone, Aerrow…" she whispered. "He's been gone ever since…you were…were…"

"No…" he keened, low and brokenly.

Her hand was a weight on his shoulder, and he flinched. "He…fought hard…he…" she began, but her emotion choked the words.

He buried his face in his mangled hands.

Piper drew him, unresisting, into her lap.

She rubbed his back for hours as his sobs wracked his beaten body.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 292

Okay… I finally realized how I can end it. And I am pretty sure it will end with the next chapter.

Don't quote me on that. But I'm about 99 percent sure its almost through.


	27. Restless Night

Restless Night

Aerrow tossed and turned on the comfortable, soft bed.

Although time had passed he still didn't feel like he was _home_.

It had been strange to sleep on a real mattress. Even more so to wear his old clothes.

It had been mortifying, too…Finn had to help him dress. The sharpshooter hadn't made any comments, but the pity…the all pervading pity…had emanated from the slim blonde's demeanor.

Each of them knew about his hands. They each had the same look of pity in their eyes.

…Even though he tried to deny it to himself…the Dark Ace was right, it seemed.

So he tossed and turned, his dreams filled with restless and mangled memories, dominated by the Dark Ace's voice that would not leave him alone.

"_I'm going to break you, sky knight."_

"_I hope you don't think you've bested me,"_

"_What are you going to do to me now?" Aerrow asked._

"…_I will break you…"_

"_I have a new task to see to…but I wanted to leave you with a parting gift."_

"_She didn't take long to crack…not long at all."_

"_She kept asking you to forgive her…"_

"_Now you'll cry forever."_

"_All you are to them now, Aerrow…All you will ever be again…is a __liability."_

It was an endless repeat. He woke to the unfamiliar sounds of the ship settling in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat and ashamed of the tears that slid hotly down his face.

He curled around his useless hands, waiting for daylight to come…and wishing that it never would.

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 257

I lied again. This is the next-to-last chapter. The last chapter is coming right up, ASAP.


	28. Broken

Broken

"What do we do?" Finn asked, his normal smile replaced by worry.

Stork sighed. "Its not like he's going to pop back in here and be perfectly all right, you know…idiot." He muttered under his breath.

"But…he's Aerrow, right? Aerrow's always okay…right?" Junko asked, his innocent tone adding an urgent insistence to the words. "Aerrow can't be…uh…"

Finn exhaled loudly. "It doesn't matter! There's got to be something we can do to fix him! Aerrow can't stay like this, it's gonna kill him!"

Piper sat at the table with her head pillowed in her arms, listening to the conversation. At Finn's comment, she looked up sharply. "What are you going to do, Finn? Huh? Aerrow's been through more in the past few months than you or I can even imagine!"

Finn stood, knocking his chair over. "Don't you think I know that? But letting him sit in his room all day and night isn't helping things. I'm sorry to say it, but we have a _war _to fight, if you haven't noticed! And we don't have time for this!"

"I can't believe you said that!"

"Look at the big picture, Piper! I care about him as much as you do. Hell, he's my _best friend! _But we need a leader now, Piper. And whatever they did to him messed him up bad."

"We have to help him!"

"We will! But we need to fight now, Piper, and he can't. He can't lead the fight when he can't do anything but sit in his room in the dark. They broke him. I don't know how, but they broke him." Finn shouted back. "He's...broken." he choked out.

Silence fell.

In his quarters, Aerrow curled up tighter on the floor. Squeezed his eyes shut against the painful truth of those words.

_He's broken._

OOO

Author's Note: Total word count: 300

Okay, here's where the hate mail starts. Now, before I get a flood of evil emails, remember that the whole purpose of this fic was to _break _Aerrow.

And I do have a sort of light at the end of the tunnel. I'm tempted to write a continuation on this fic, chronicling how Aerrow sets back in with his old squad after the events that took place in this story…but if I do that, I warn you that it will probably have the same dark overtones as this, and will probably leave you with a bitter taste in your mouth, as I am sure this one has.

But again, that was my intention with this fic. Cruel…huh?

Regardless, let me know what you guys would like me to do.

Oh yes… I almost forgot. I am so sorry that I haven't been replying to reviews lately, but that shall change, starting now! From this chapter on, (to include anything else I write), I shall reply to each an every review, just like I used to.

And now, with that, it is time to start updating my other depressing fic, Conversations.

Ta!


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